Page 62 of Bonded Chaos

When I locked my gaze with his, a gasp slipped between my lips. Ryker’s eyes were obsidian, no trace of his steel-grey irises peeked through.

That wasn’t what drew the gasp from my throat, however.

Elongated fangs protruded from his gums, sharp and glistening with blood. Suddenly, the feral, animalistic sounds I had heard earlier made perfect sense.

“What are you?” I breathed, unable to tear my gaze away.

Ryker strode toward me, not caring about the pulverized remains he was treading through. When I was within reaching distance, his hand darted out, and he collared my throat with his large palm.

“Mine,” he growled.

Then his lips slammed against my own, and darkness swallowed me whole.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Cadence

When the darkness dissipated, we were standing in Ryker’s chambers. The familiar environment immediately calmed my racing heart.

That was until I turned around and caught sight of Ryker.

Blood coated every inch of him, but his eyes had returned to the steel-grey color I was used to. His fangs had receded, and there was no sign of the shadowy wings that had cradled me protectively.

I could feel Ryker’s anger radiating from him, and that may have been a cause for concern if my own rage wasn’t morphing into a maelstrom of wrath.

Raising my hand, I sent my palm sailing toward him until it connected with his cheek. A sharp stinging sensation erupted on my flesh, but I ignored it as I slapped him again and again.

Unsatisfied with the damage I was inflicting, I refocused my efforts on pummeling my fists against his hard chest. I was almost certain that the blows hurt me more than they hurt him, but I refused to give up the only outlet I had for my anger.

Ryker’s hands moved between us, and he wrapped his fingers around my wrists in a punishing hold.

“That’s enough,” he growled.

My head reared back before I drove it into his face. Blood erupted from his nose, yet the sight was less satisfying than I’d hoped, tainted by the blood of his victims.

Ryker released me and staggered back. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he stemmed the flow of blood. I watched in silence. My chest heaved as I glared at him.

After a few tense moments, he removed his coat and tossed it to the ground. Next, he reached his hand behind his head and pulled his tunic over his bulky frame. He used the garment to mop up the blood on his face and hands before discarding it to the floor alongside his coat.

“You want it rough, Cadence?” he snarled. “Fine by me.”

Ryker prowled toward me, and I stepped out of reach.

“Don’t think for one second you’re putting your fucking hands on me, Ryker,” I spat.

“Oh, I’m thinking about it, Cadence. It’s all I ever think about. Every second of every godsdamned day.”

I darted behind his desk, trying to create distance between us.

“That’s what you have a fiancée for.”

Ryker let out a low, menacing growl, the sound vibrating with a warning before he swept his arm across the surface of his desk. Parchment fluttered, and the inkpot toppled, spilling its contents all over the ground.

“If I want to take a wife, Cadence, I’ll take a fucking wife. And you know what? You’ll still be here, waiting obediently in my chambers, because no version of our story ends with me giving you up.”

“You don’t get to marry herandkeep me as your unwilling mistress, Ryker,” I shrieked.

The word tasted foul in my mouth, and I wanted to retch all over again. “I’m not that type of woman.”

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